Her presence exuded an aura of elegance and aloofness, instantly drawing the attention of everyone around.
“Seraphina.”
Irina met her gaze with a fiery intensity, her emotions overflowing and palpable.
‘Seraphina Winslet.’
That was the girl's name, a character, and a future pillar in the game.
‘And she's the only one who would target Irina so directly.’
Besides Seraphina, no one would deliberately antagonize Irina like this.
‘After all, they are arch-enemies.’
The information that Seraphina and Irina were rivals was not public, but everyone knew it. Even in the game, the two frequently clashed, creating trouble for the players.
They were like oil and water, almost impossible to put on the same team. There were times when players needed to make a choice, deciding which side to support.
Each had their own storylines and problems, and choosing one side essentially made the other an enemy.
Seraphina remained unfazed by Irina's fiery aura, regarding her with a composed demeanor. There were no other students from her team in sight.
‘Are they scattered?’ I wondered, seeing Seraphina alone. If it were Seraphina, it was indeed possible she would act alone. Despite her cold exterior, she was also a conceited and arrogant mage.
‘No, that shouldn't be the case.’
I quickly dismissed the thought. Unlike Irina, Seraphina was someone who could control her arrogance and emotions, which was why she ranked higher than Irina in the academy.
“What a surprise to run into you here, Irina,” Seraphina's voice was as calm as ever, with a hint of coldness. “I was just discussing the strength of the Phoenix family's heir with my team.”
Irina gritted her teeth, her fist tightly gripping her staff. She looked around, noting the absence of anyone else around Seraphina. “I don't see anyone else around you.”
Seraphina smiled gracefully, her demeanor unwavering. “Indeed. After all, there's not much else to discuss besides your fiery temper and arrogant personality.”
There was one thing I overlooked when talking about her.
‘That woman has a seriously venomous tongue.’
If there was one difference between Irina and Seraphina, it was that Seraphina knew how to use words skillfully.
She must be good at socializing and politics, especially in high society environments. After all, if one doesn't know how to speak, they can't survive in that kind of environment.
That's also why Irina hated going home, because her family environment was like that.
“If you're here for a fight, Seraphina, you won't be disappointed.”
The corners of Seraphina's mouth turned up slightly, revealing a hint of amusement. “Aren't student skirmishes always enlightening?”
Crack!
As her words fell, mana surged around her, and ice crystals rapidly condensed above her head. A burst of frost erupted from her, instantly turning the surrounding environment into an icy world. The ground beneath our feet froze, and the air became bitterly cold.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
Irina was unafraid, and flames roared around her staff.
“Ugh, this is troublesome,” I muttered under my breath.
Knowing that a battle was about to break out here meant that we could be caught in the crossfire.
The two mages faced off, the elements of fire and ice colliding fiercely.
‘We need to be ready too.’
I observed the battle. As much as I wanted to see the fight between the academy's top two mages, I knew we didn't have time.
Since Seraphina attacked us, it meant she wanted something. That girl wouldn't do something that wouldn't benefit her. She might enjoy teasing Irina a little, but essentially, she didn't like doing meaningless things, and her appearing alone and attacking clearly had a purpose.
Her target was likely the device. Although we recorded the mana formula on the device, we haven't submitted it to the teacher yet, and there are no rules stating that the device belongs to a specific group.
This meant it could be plundered.
I realized this from the start, so I had already quietly taken the device from Irina.
‘She probably thinks the device is with Irina.’
Seraphina knew Irina as well as I did, and she also knew how arrogant Irina was.
‘This battle is meaningless.’
She also knew that no matter how much power they put into this battle, there would be no clear result.
After all, there were other predators out there, and she couldn't waste too much time.
‘So, she'll be aiming for a clean victory.’
And that clean victory was getting the device, which basically meant all our points.
“Sylvie, are you ready?”
I said, looking at her.
“What?”
She asked, somewhat surprised.
‘!’
I was about to tell her that enemies might have already approached, but at that moment, my senses went off.
Clang!
The sound of metal clashing echoed through the ice-covered phenomenon, and I quickly turned around, raising a dagger to block an arrow fired from behind. The arrow struck the blade and fell harmlessly to the frozen ground.
[Eye of Time]
Activating the skill, I immediately observed the direction from which the arrow came.
‘From the tree.’
My eyes immediately noticed another student in the tree. He tried his best to hide his mana and aura, but he wasn't skilled enough.
‘A low-ranking student.’
Teams are usually balanced. Therefore, I knew he was a lower-ranked student.
‘Then, this must be another one.’
Tap! Tap!
Right before my eyes, a figure appeared.
Whoosh!
Another student charged at me with great speed, wielding a longsword aimed straight for my chest.
Clang!
Having already prepared, I blocked the attack with my dagger, directing the longsword towards the ground, disrupting his balance.
Bang!
I followed up with a kick, pushing him away, creating distance.
“Ugh…” The student grunted, staggering back from my kick. He quickly regained his composure, his face showing frustration and determination.
As he staggered back, I took the opportunity to assess the situation. On the ice-covered battlefield, the hiss of flames intertwined with the cold of frost.
‘Take out the archer first.’
I immediately took the bow from my back, nocked an arrow, and infused it with mana.
Whoosh!
Having repeated this action countless times, and having trained alternating between melee and ranged combat, I fired the arrow almost instantly, aiming straight for the archer in the tree.
Clang!
The guy I had just knocked back noticed me switching to the bow and immediately charged at me again, wielding his sword.
Clang!
I blocked his attack again with my dagger, but this time I was pushed back a few steps. Switching back to the dagger took a little time, and my stance wasn't perfect.
Whoosh!
The guy continued to attack silently, and I used my agility to dodge and parry.
Swish!
However, he was still quite fast, probably ranked around 700 in the school, and I had difficulty withstanding his attacks with pure strength.
“Heh… I thought you were stronger than this, guess I overestimated you.”
The guy finally spoke when two cuts appeared on my body, his tone filled with obvious contempt. It seemed he had finally let his guard down.
‘How foolish.’
This situation was also common in the game, most students would become complacent when they gained a slight advantage. I knew they were still immature youngsters, but at least they should learn how dangerous dungeons could be.
‘This is a lesson for you.’
[Quick Step]
I activated the skill, and my speed instantly increased.
Whoosh!
I swiftly dodged the swordsman's slash, and I saw his eyes widen, clearly not expecting me to dodge so suddenly. He had gotten used to my previous speed, it was his mistake.
Swish!
I took the opportunity to cleanly slash at his abdomen.
“Ah!”
I precisely cut the place where his nerves connected, temporarily slowing his movements.
Swish!
Then, I slashed again at the connection point on the back of his arm.
That was where his arm tendons connected, he staggered, and the sword fell to the ground.
I was about to continue the attack, but at that moment, I saw his eyes light up.
‘!’
I immediately retreated.
Crack! Whoosh!
A small pillar of earth and stone suddenly protruded from the ground beneath my feet. If I had been a second later, I might have been injured.
‘As expected, he has a skill.’
Like me, other students must also have skills and trump cards.
As the battle reached a stalemate, I took the opportunity to assess the situation.
On the ice-covered battlefield, the hiss of flames intertwined with the cold of frost, and the archer and this swordsman…
“Sylvie.”
I immediately called out to Sylvie, who was witnessing everything in surprise. Dealing with these opponents alone without exposing all my strength wasn't easy.
“……”
She didn't respond.
“Sylvie!”
When I raised my voice, it finally snapped her out of it.
“S-sorry.”
She quickly apologized, but now wasn't the time for apologies.
“Can you give me a buff?”
I didn't want to show my strength to the others, I needed a reason to explain how I defeated these two.
‘I need to attribute this merit to Sylvie.’
She must have attracted some attention during the last incident, and the mentor who explained things to me back then likely contacted the dean, so it should be fine to do so.
“I… I'll try.”
Sylvie nodded, refocusing her attention. She quickly began to channel mana, weaving intricate patterns in the air with her hands, casting her support skill.
Most healers are very important, not only because they can heal but also because they can apply buffs. But I still don't know how these skills are related, or how they acquire these skills.
‘I guess it comes from their traits.’ I thought, not having much time to think.
Whoosh!
The guy in front of me realized Sylvie's class and immediately charged at me, trying to stop her from buffing me…
